The Portland daily press., 1887-10-26
PORTLAND EAST INplAMEN.
Descriptions of How the East india
Trade Came to New England.
Interesting Account of the Owners
of the Portland.
The First Indiaman That Ever Sailed
from Maine.
THon. VIM. Goold.l

from Maine.
[Hon. VIM. Goold.1
Until after the Revolution the India and
China trade had been almost exclusively in
the hands of the Dutch and English East In
dia companies. After the peace of 1888 the
NewYork merchants thought that they might
secure share of it and in 1884 the ship En-
press of China sailed from New York, and
after round voyage of fourteen months ar
rived home from the East Indies in May
1855. She made profitable voyage which
the New England merchants were not long
in finding out. Elias Haskell Derby, the
famous Salem merchant had ship, the
Grand Turk of only 263 tons which had been
employed as a privateer in the war of the
Revolution. On the arrival of the Empress
of China in New York, Derby soon set about
getting cargo and fitting out the Grand
Turk for Canton. Her principal cargo was
ginseng, medicinal root much valued by
the Chinese. 1t was common in the woods
of Maine in my boyhood under the name of
"ginsen." The Grand Turk sailed in De-
cember, 1885, for the Isle of France, India
and China. She returned to Salem with
valuable cargo, and this was the first voyage
from New England with a return cargo of
the tabled rich goods of the Indies. Larger
ships were required for the trade and the
Grand Turk was sold on the next voyage in
1888, at the Isle of France. Derby i'm
mediately had the keel laid down in Salem
for ship of nearly 600 tons, of the same
name. This was the famous Grand Turk
which was stranded at Cushing's Point,
Portland harbor, in January, 1898, where
she had put in in distress after passage of
nine months from Canton, with the most
valuable cargo ever brought to the United
States from that part of the world. The ar
rival of the first Grand Turk at Salem from
China with goods, which it had been sup
posed could only be obtained in Europe
through one of the East India companies
electrified the shipping merchants from
Portland to New York, as thoroughly as did
the discovery of gold in 1S49. Two Portland
merchants determined to enter the competi-
ton for share of the India trade, but they
had no ship suitable and one must be built.
The opening Of commerce with the distant
Indies brought revolution in the building
of ships. They were built larger, and of
better timber and fastenings The long
voyages and dead Gains through which they
must pass required more cabin comforts.
such as windows on the quarter opening
from state rooms upon quarter galleries. and
stern galleries for the relief of officers and
passengers under the tropics. st. Pierre's
story of Paul and Virginia" describes an
East lndiaman of the last century in which
Virginia was passenger to the Isle of
france, where the ship was driven on
shore. A heroic sailor induced Virginia to
leap with him from the stern gallery of the
stranded ship into the sea, where she per-
lshed. The opening of the China and India
trade to American commerce produced many
large and elegant ships. An East Indiaman
OF the time was invested by the people with
as much Importance as were the tabled argo-
sizes which were employed in transporting
Cortez Mexican treasures to Spain.
The leading Portland merchant in the
building of the Indiamen was Eben Preble.
son of the Brigadier. He was born In 1857.
had been selectman OF the town and was
one OF the petitioners for the setting off of
the Neck. He married first in 1881 daugh-
ter OF Enoch 1lsley, and the same year he
bought the house of his father, afterwards
known as the Casco House. The Casco
Bank block occupies its front yard The
other Portland nan was Joseph Jewett.
who came from Scarborough in 1876. He
lived and had store in the house which
formerly stood on the south corner of Mid
die and Silver streets He was a thrifty
trader and was the owner of some shipping.
His wife was notable woman and tended
the store while he looked after the outdoor
business
The third partner in the venture. and by
no means an obscure one, was the famous
Salem merchant, William Gray, Jr.. C"Billy''
Gray the world over.) He had served his
time with Richard Derby, of Salem, brother
OF Elias Haskell Derby, who was the pioneer
In the India trade from New England From
his small savings, besides assisting his pa
rents, Gray purchased share in one of his
employers vessels in the China trade, and
finally became the largest shipping merchant
own account more than forty ships at one
time. He was originally Federalist but be-
came Democrat and was elected Leuten-
ant Governor of Massachusetts on the ticket
with Elbridge Gerry in 1910. After becoming
wealthy he moved to Boston to enjoy it. But
for him the frigate Constitution would not
nave been sent to sea when launched.
.'For what avail the pillow or sail
Or land or life, if freedom fall"
Capt. Thomas Browns wife, of Portland.
was relative of Gray's, which with some
other interests often brought him here. In
1874 he purchased Of Col. John May the large
vacant lot on the southwest side of Ann,
now Park street, reaching from Congress
nearly to Danforth street. On this lot Gray
built large rope walk. and went extensive
y into the manufacture of cordage with
Capt. Brown as agent Gray's ships brought
cargoes of hemp direct from Russia, which
was stored ia a large hemp house on the lot.
HIS own ships required large quantities of
cordage,. and the rigging for the new ship un-
doubtedly came from his factory
Mr.. Gray's friends, Preble and Jewett. in
duced him to take third, they taking each
third of an East Indiaman to be built here.
and to give them the benefit of his expert
ence In the trade, with Preble as ships hus-
band. The ship was launched in the spring
OF 1855 The master selected was Captain
Seth Storer of Saco, whose two brothers.
Woodbury. and Eben Storer were prominent
merchants here. Folsom's history of Saco
and Biddeford-1S30-say Captain Storer
was an eminent shipmaster at period when
the art OF navigation was not so generally
understood as at the present time. y
Captain Storer had made at least one voy-
age to the Cape of Good Hope from Portland
before. The new ship was called 'The
Portland" in honor of her home port. She
was built and rugged in as good stvle as the
salem and Boston ships in the same trade;
with stern gallery. and sprtsail yard beneath
the bowsprit, the braces leading to the cat
heads, and was the last vessel to carry that
appendage from the port. In the account of
her out put the ship, is charged with "a wom-
ans figure and two brackalets, etc., forty-six
dollars" This was the figure-head
by the favor OF Rev. II. G. Storer of Scar
borough, who is grandson of the captain.
nave some OF the ships accounts, but moth
ing relating to her tonnage except that her
light water-line was at thirteen feet. This
would indicate vessel of about 500 tons.
After her return from Bombay one-third of
her was sold for $19,5O0O0. Probably the
cost of the ship when built was more than
sixty thousand dollars. There is no invoice
of her outward cargo. She sailed early in
the summer. The Boston Centinel of that
time contains this item in the ship news:
"The ship Portland, Storer, of and from Port
land for Bengal, sailed from the Isle of May, July
4th."
Heaven speed the sail so calamity unfurled,
To furnish and accommodate world;
To give the pole the procedure of the SUM-
And knit the unsocial climates into one.v
TO BE CONTINUED